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AppAdvisor
AppAdvisor
AppAdvisor
Mobile devices are becoming more powerful and versatile, and are becoming the primary
computing device. According to Godwin-Jones (2011), this is not a trend language
teachers can ignore.
If students are using their mobile devices as their primary computing device, then
using applications to support learning of language bridges the gap between school
learning and home learning. Learning can happen anywhere and anytime. Having a
teacher guide the use of these applications and advise students in areas of weakness
furthers individual learning, making it more valuable for all students.
Being digital natives, todays students are intuitively engaged by the media and
digital world that surrounds them. Rhiannon Sparkes, an Elementary School teacher who
uses iPads in her classroom and has done research with Apple, believes that Using
technology is where the students are most comfortable and most creative. So its really
exciting to help them enjoy classic literature. The potential with iPad is limitless
(Apple).
Having a tool like AppAdvisor for teachers to browse supports hard working
educators and provides them with tools that engage, encourage and are current. To help
educators decide on which applications to use, AppAdvisor sorts and categorizes
applications according to a matrix built on two types of criteria: on the x-axis, we list 13
criteria made up of language skills that language learners need to master to be truly
competent users. These are Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking, Grammar/Sentence
Structure, Vocabulary, Storytelling, Publishing and Content Creation. Conventionally,
most of these skills are taught through a combination of textbooks, workbooks, drills and
games. However, with the use of mobile applications, these skills will benefit from the
AppAdvisor
affordances that mobile learning provides. These affordances include active learning,
portability, participatory learning, immediate feedback and delivery of smaller chunks of
language information that can be repeated and adapted (Bracke, 2013).
Using mobile applications correctly can enhance learner language acquisition.
Oftentimes the use of technology can become a hindrance or a distraction if used
incorrectly because the same goals could have been better achieved without the
intervention of a mobile applications. Its use should therefore augment the student's
learning experience and optimize learning capacity (Carrington, 2008).
On the y-axis are six items from Blooms Taxonomy. This is a strategic tool that
helps teachers to design learning objectives that achieve higher-order thinking. The six
criteria are Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analyzing, Evaluating and Creating.
This taxonomy of lower-order to higher-order thinking skills lends itself particularly well
to language acquisition. It seems to parallel a language learners journey from the time he
is a beginner trying to remember and understand new vocabulary, till he becomes a more
advanced speaker who is creating complex language that reflects his thinking processes.
Although this taxonomy has been in existence since the early 20th century, it has been
updated as Blooms Digital Taxonomy (Figure 1) for use in 21st century education.
Where the two axes of AppAdvisor intersect, there will be many applications that
could be employed by an educator to fulfill the relevant criteria. For example, if a teacher
were looking for an application to encourage students to practise their pronunciation, they
could choose Chatterpix where the x-axis criterion of Speaking and the y-axis criterion of
Remembering (how to pronounce a word) intersect.
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applications
Productivity
applications
Immersive
applications
Used to play games, view media and perform specialized tasks; offer a
full-screen, visually rich environment which is focused on the content
and the users experience with the content
Figure 3. Three Kinds of applications Designs (Sweeney 2012:2, quoted in Barack, 2013)
AppAdvisor
Figure 2. How to Select Mobile Tools for Engaging Students in Language Acquisition
Here is a visual that encapsulates the cyclical process that an educator would have
to go through to select an application. It begins firstly with the need to assess the learning
needs presented. These needs are always changing according to the progress that the
learner makes, and therefore some kind of formative assessment should be ongoing, at
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least in the educators mind. After the educator knows what is needed, he will have to
also decide which thinking skills or process will fulfill the learners language acquisition
most appropriately at that stage of learning. The educator then needs to study
the curriculum to assess when to schedule specific applications that encourage active
learning or collaborative learning to fulfill that learning objective. Correspondingly, other
or similar applications could then be selected to support class learning through
differentiated self-learning during or after school hours. Finally, the educator will design
the lesson to skillfully use the applications that were chosen so as to maximize the
learning of the students both in class and outside of class.
Key Concepts and Context
Considerations for mobile application formats will be taken into account when
designing the AppAdvisor. Interfaces, device features, usability and connectivity are all
variables when using mobile applications in the classroom. Having a centralized source
for educators to go to that is rated and reviewed by other educators will help in
overcoming obstacles like usability and platform type. Since private application sources
(iTunes) are designed for particular platforms, it will prove to be a useful tool when
implementing them into classroom settings that contain very diverse application needs
(Hue and Meier 2010). As the applications market continues to grow and develop for
multiple platform capabilities we hope to mitigate the frustrations of educators through
AppAdvisor.
By providing a matrix for evaluation that takes into account the myriad of mobile
applications available, our design will essentially be a resource for language applications.
By seeking out and developing evaluation and assessment criteria of these applications,
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we can better defend our own autonomy as professionals, as school boards and districts
seek to limit, manage and generally resist the use of mobile applications. It is understood
that recent research in the area of collaborative and participatory learning environments
incorporates the use of mobile applications. This shows a high level of engagement by
students when used for academic purposes in the classroom, which also requires
educators to critically evaluate their implementation and purpose. As Yarmey concludes,
while students are interested in using their phones for academic purposes, they still
require guidance from educators to choose the most appropriate mobile resource and to
evaluate mobile websites and mobile applications (Yarmey, 2011).
With our focus on language acquisition applications, our goal for AppAdvisor is
the evaluation of mobile applications through the developed matrix. We intend to launch
this process by focusing on five different applications as a starting point. The intention is,
as our AppAdvisor base grows, educators with diverse accessibility will be able to locate,
evaluate, and review applications for different platforms and device requirements. There
is some debate about the longevity of the mobile applications in comparison to the use
and growth of mobile web-based applications. Possible developments in AppAdvisor
may also include evaluation of mobile websites, as trends indicate that growth here will
occur at a much faster rate than that of mobile applications. The argument is that mobile
websites are easier to access in comparison to some mobile applications that require
multiple pages open, further slowing down the process (Yarmey, 2011). Staying current
and ahead of the curve in terms of trends is also a consideration for the longevity of such
a tool.
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The constructionist theories of Seymour Papert influence the scope and sequence
of our design project as it models the type of collaborative and immersive learning
educators have come to value (Stager, 2014), specifically, the idea of building a
community of lifelong learners.
Counter Arguments
Accessibility
Although iPads and Android tablets are available in many First, Developing and
Third World countries, there is a vast disparity with regard to accessibility within
countries and populations. This disparity has been termed the participation gap by Jenkins
(2010).
Usage
Even where iPads and tablets are available by the cartload in schools, many
teachers do not know how to optimize their use in classrooms.
Connection Speed
In rural areas, and in large cities where there is an over-subscription of the
Internet, connection to the Internet can be limited and even unreliable. This could hinder
online learning through the use of mobile applications. Offline options should be made
available to offset the limitations of Internet coverage.
Workflow
It is important that learners are able to share their data with their teacher for
assessment, and with their classmates or friends for collaboration. This feature is not
always available on all iPad applications.
Interactivities
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Our group will attempt to create two specific design platforms: first, a simplistic
looking website, which will guide users to select the best application mobile application
based on a query. This visually interactive website will look sleek and simple, applying
Don Normans theory of a visceral level in designing, creating a comfortable and easy to
navigate environment, ensuring that novice users will stay on our website and make use
of what it offers (Norman, 2003). Mobile applications depicted on the website will
undergo a specific rating system, which is based on a very comprehensive and complex
analytical matrix.
The scores for a specific mobile application will be cross-referenced with reviews
and feedback from other educators in the future. Our intention is to keep the website as
an open source website with the hopes of making AppAdvisor a sustainable and everevolving environment, where educators help educators. The development of our design
will follow Dr. Paul Kims ADDIES principles: analysis, design, development,
implementation, evaluation, sustainment (Kim, 2012). With sustainment in mind, our
goal is to create the notion of a wiki-like platform, where seasoned experts will rate
mobile applications using our matrix, and computing new scores for all sorts of
applications. This will give educators, who are looking for best mobile applications, the
chance to be a user and evaluator at the same time.
Second, we would like to expand our reach to mobile users, creating a mobile
version of our AppAdvisor. This mobile application will follow the same principles and
exhaustive assessment as the website. Keeping a sleek, simple, easy to navigate platform
is our key priority. The easier the platform can be used, the happier the user will be and
the more traffic it will generate, which will be vital to its existence.
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Our design will be for applications across different platforms and will aim
to reach out to every educator, no matter what the technological background might be.
From novice to expert, AppAdvisor will serve as a consulting platform to choose the right
mobile applications according to keyword searches, educator ratings, and user reviews.
To promote our product, we will attempt to create an advertisement spot in the
form of a short stop-motion commercial for both platforms based on the main ideas of
AppAdvisor. We would also like to set up workshops in schools or school districts to
introduce this effective tool to educators.
Verification
Despite all the evidence showing how mobile applications can be useful
educational tools for language acquisition, there remains the question as to how we could
verify how useful our AppAdvisor will be. Are educators consulting the AppAdvisor
webpage or mobile version? Are teachers inspired to try out a new mobile application in
the classroom to engage their students, ultimately increasing learning? To verify our
design, we will employ statistics on website visits, use, and downloads. We will also
provide quick survey pop-ups that encourage critical feedback from visitors.
Firstly, we will verify how successful AppAdvisor is by how often it is used.
Educators will be looking for tools to help them wade through the myriad of mobile
applications available to them. AppAdvisor will narrow down the specifications of an
application and ultimately, it will save educators around the world a lot of time.
Secondly, prompting teachers to complete a quick survey, while visiting
AppAdvisor, would reveal important information about what teachers are looking for and
how satisfied they are with what they are finding.
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Bracke, K. (2013). Apps for mobile language learning. Retrieved February 14, 2015,
from https://www.academia.edu/8016956/apps_for_mobile_language_learning
Carrington, A. (2008). In Support of Excellence. Retrieved February 14, 2015, from
http://www.unity.net.au/allansportfolio/edublog/?p=917
Godwin-Jones, R. (2011). Emerging Technologies Mobile apps for Language Learning.
Language Learning & Technology, 15(2), 211. doi:ISSN 1094-3501.
Hue, R., & Meier, A. (n.d.). Mobile Strategy Report: Mobile Device User Research (pp.
1-37, Rep.). California: California Digital Library.
Kim, P. (Speaker). (2012, September 18). Dr. Paul Kim, Stanford University, Designing
a New Learning Environment. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5E8ZBuysdWA
Kafai, B. Y. (2006). Playing and making games for learning: Instructionist and
constructionist perspectives for game studies. Games and Culture, 1(1), 36.
doi:10.1177/1555412005281767
Kafai, B. Y., & Peppler, A. K. (2011). Youth, technology, and DIY: Developing
participatory competencies in creative media production. Review of Research in
Education, 35(1), 89. doi:10.3102/0091732X10383211
Nakamura, L. (2007). Digitizing Race: Visual Cultures of the Internet. Minneapolis, MN,
USA: University of Minnesota Press. Retrieved February 14, 2015 from
http://www.ebrary.com.
Norman, D. (Speaker). (2003, February). Don Norman: 3 ways good design makes you
happy. Retrieved from
http://www.ted.com/talks/don_norman_on_design_and_emotion?language=en
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Appendix 1
Matrix for Selecting Mobile Apps in Language Teaching
Language Learner Level Intermediate
Language Skill
Bloom's
Taxonomy
Ap
An
Integrated
Storybird
Storybird
Reading
WordPress
WordPress
Writing
WordPress
WordPress
Listening
Duolingo
Duolingo
ChatterPix
ChatterPix
Speaking
Duolingo
Duolingo
ChatterPix
ChatterPix
Literature
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Story telling
Storybird
Publishing
WordPress
Content Creation
Grammar/
Sentence Structure
WordPress
Gr
Wonderland
Vocabulary
Duolingo
Duolingo
R=
Remembering
U=
Understandin
g
Ap =
Applying
Storybird
WordPress
An =
Analyzing
Evernote
Evernote
E=
Evaluating
C = Creating
Appendix 2
Application Selection Process
1. Assess learning needs of the class
a.
Linguistic background of students
b.
Academic or age level of students
c.
Language skill needed (grammar, speaking, listening, reading, writing, integrated,
communicative)
2. Evaluate which thinking skills are needed, according to Blooms Taxonomy
a.
Remember/Knowledge
b.
Understand/Comprehension
c.
Apply/Application
d.
Analyze/Analysis
e.
Evaluate/Evaluation
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f.
Create/Synthesis
2. Identify which learning objectives in the curriculum need participatory and
collaborative learning using mobile applications. Some applications lend
themselves better to collaborative learning than others.
3. Decide which learning objectives need to be supported by applications for selflearning outside the classroom
4. Design a blended lesson that uses the appropriate mobile applications both during
and outside of class time.